Double Cursed Monk
by Tiger Timberwolf
Summary: Miroku asks the wrong person his famous question, and receives a new curse on top of the Air Rip. What's he to do when his every lecherous act turns him more into - a kitsune? ON HIATUS.
1. A New Curse

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha! This is just for fun, never for profit.  
  
A/N: I know this is odd...the idea came to me when I was half asleep and I just had to run with it. Tell me what you think!  
  
Chapter One  
  
Inuyasha was disappointed – and Shippo was hiding. The youkai carrying a good sized shard hadn't even realized its importance, and thanks to Kagome's politeness was perfectly willing to hand it over without argument. Hence the hanyou's disappointment...he really preferred to fight.  
  
Shippo was hiding practically in Sango's hair because Kagome was close to the youkai, and the youkai was a raven youkai, ancient enemies of the foxes. Fortunately for all concerned she was a powerful female who considered an orphaned fox kit beneath her notice. She was not very tall but exuded an aura of power, with rippling black hair and wings in her humanoid form, dusky skin and dark eyes. The raven was quite beautiful, and unfortunately Miroku thought so as well.  
  
Both parties were preparing to take their leave of each other when the monk went up to her. Before anyone could stop him, he clasped her taloned hands in his and asked his famous question:  
  
"Will you bear my child?"  
  
Sango reached for her boomerang, but the youkai reacted faster. She threw him away from her. Miroku landed on his rear, looking a bit surprised.  
  
"Is that a no, then?"  
  
Power flared around the female as Kagome tried to apologize for her wayward companion's antics.  
  
"Do you take me for some whore, human?" the raven demanded in outrage. Then to Kagome, "Silence child, I care not for the reason behind his rudeness! Monk, for your reprehensible behavior and temerity, I curse you. I curse you that with every display of your lechery you will lose yourself more until at last you are the vilest of creatures I know, and not a human at all. The same fate will fall on any woman silly enough to love you!" At her words Inuyasha reached for Tetsusaiga and the others went on the defensive, but she was already shimmering into her true form. The enormous raven took to the sky, avoiding an attack from Sango, and her words rang back to them, "And my death will not lift this curse!"  
  
Then she was gone, leaving the chagrined group behind.  
  
~  
  
"You really did it this time, bouzo," growled Inuyasha a bit later as they resumed their trek. Kagome and Sango were also looking at him in mingled concern and irritation, Shippo on the first's shoulder and Kirara on the second's. Miroku was quite composed, and his response surprised them a little.  
  
"I am already cursed, my friends," he pointed out, lifting his gloved and beaded hand. "If I happen to acquire a second in my search for an heir to take up the fight against Naraku should I fall, I will gladly deal with it." The others were sobered by mention of the evil hanyou and the vicious curse on the monk's family. Then Miroku added, cheekily, "Besides, she did not say her curse would kill me!"  
  
BONK! Boomerang met skull.  
  
"Stupid hentai," muttered an irate Sango. "She also said it would fall on anyone who loved you."  
  
"Why Sango!" From his position on the ground his gloved hand reached up to caress a certain portion of a certain demon slayer's anatomy. "Are you concerned because you – Ah!"  
  
Hand met posterior, and suddenly Miroku let out a startled cry. There was the strangest sensation in his head! He fell back, a little shaken, and the others turned sharply. Eyes widened all around as he groaned softly.  
  
"Houshi-sama!" gasped Sango.  
  
"That was unusual..." he muttered. "What's wrong?" The monk looked up at their shocked expressions and felt something twitch atop his head.  
  
...Something twitched...  
  
...On top of his head?...  
  
Miroku reached up uncertainly and encountered two furry triangular shapes firmly attached to his skull. He gasped, and Shippo jumped from Kagome to him.  
  
"How did you do that, Miroku? Your ears look like my daddy's did in his human form!" The kit touched one of the new appendages, making the monk flinch a bit. That tickled...  
  
"Fox ears?" he asked, a bit dismayed. Kagome dug around in her bag and came up with a mirror. He accepted it graciously and peered at his reflection. His human ears were no longer in evidence, for starters. Since his hair mostly covered that part of his head anyway, it wasn't too noticeable. But the new ears surely were! Perched on top of his head, poking through his hair, were two handsome fox ears, somewhat larger than Inuyasha's. The fur was mostly reddish, darkening to black at the tips, and the insides were creamy white.  
  
"Of course!" Sango figured it out. She knelt beside him and touched one of the ears curiously. "She was a raven youkai. The most disgusting thing to her would be a fox youkai because of their feud."  
  
The monk shivered a bit...it felt different when Sango touched his ears than when Shippo did! He stood up, straightening his robes to hide his disconcertion.  
  
"Are the ears the only thing?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha was watching with unreadable eyes, and the girl from the future was cuddling the fox kit, who was upset at being 'the most disgusting thing the raven could imagine'. "Did anything else change?"  
  
Miroku grinned and the words slipped out as naturally as breathing.  
  
"Why Kagome-sama, are you asking to see under my clothing?"  
  
There was a loud ripping sound and an undignified yelp from the cursed young man as something sprouted from his lower back and tore his robes. He stared in dismay at the sleek vulpine tail that now swayed lazily behind him. It was longer and more dignified looking than Shippo's childish brush.  
  
Inuyasha had been about to do him damage for the comment, but now burst into howls of laughter instead. The rest of the little group stared at him, actively more disturbed by the hanyou's laughter than the monk's new tail.  
  
"It's when you act like a lech, bouzo!" the dog demon managed between laughs. "You change more when you act like the damn lecher you are!"  
  
"He's right!" exclaimed Sango. "First was when you touched me –"  
  
"-and then when you commented to me –"Kagome looked at Sango, and the two girls began to snicker, then to laugh helplessly. They couldn't have helped it – it was a very odd punishment for his hentai behavior that they were so often the targets of!  
  
Miroku looked offended. 


	2. Must Not Touch!

Disclaimer: See Chapter One A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed. I hope you find this chapter enjoyable as well!  
  
Chapter Two  
  
Must...not...touch...  
  
Miroku was physically holding his hand at his side. His tail twitched frantically as he gazed longingly at the beautiful temptation walking in front of him. Sango was oblivious to his inner turmoil as she strolled along ahead of him, talking with Kagome.  
  
No touch! Touch bad!  
  
He gritted his teeth. She had to know what it was doing to him! She was probably relishing his dismay like fine sake. He felt his ears fold back against his head and a tiny whimper escaped him as the demon exterminator leaned over to pick up Kirara. His hand started to reach and –  
  
SMACK!  
  
The girls turned in surprise to see Miroku twitching on the ground with a lump on his head, and an irate Inuyasha standing over him looking disgusted.  
  
"Stupid bouzo'd rather be cursed than not grope!" he said with a growl.  
  
"She's doing it on purpose!" came a plaintive voice from the ground. "Swaying and bending and-"  
  
WHAM WHAM WHAM!  
  
Shippo hopped onto the beaten monk's chest as Sango huffily wiped her boomerang. The fox kit shook his head.  
  
"You knocked him out, Sango. I think not being able to grope is making him go crazy."  
  
"If we're lucky he'll stay unconscious until we get to Kaede's" sighed Kagome. It was odd to hear the normally gentle girl say such a thing, but in the past hour Miroku had earned three beatings at the hands of Sango, two at the hands of Inuyasha, and one bite from Kirara as they all worked to keep him from getting himself even further changed. They'd succeeded thus far, but the result was one bruised monk and five irritated travelers. Even Shippo and Kirara were getting annoyed.  
  
Inuyasha, after a 'sit' from Kagome, agreed to place the unconscious Miroku on a large sized firecat's back. The problem was that someone was going to have to hold him there, and the hanyou declared he'd be sat all the way to hell before he'd do it. That left the two girls.  
  
"I'm sorry Sango, but I don't think I'm strong enough to hold him on there myself," Kagome admitted sheepishly. The demon exterminator closed her eyes in dismay.  
  
"There is no way this is going to end well," Sango warned, getting on Kirara behind Miroku. She had to actively hold him around the waist to keep him positioned, and that meant his back was pressed rather close to her chest. His tail was pinned between them, and his head lolled back against her shoulder. Even in his unconscious state his ears still moved a bit, occasionally brushing against her face.  
  
"He's just lucky the raven only cursed him when he acts like a lech. If it had been when he thought like one, he'd be a kitsune already," Inuyasha stated as they resumed their trek.  
  
"What's wrong with that?" Shippo asked from Kagome's shoulder. The little fox had been staring at the monk quite a bit since his change. He'd admitted to the girl from the future that Miroku's ears and tail made him look quite a bit like his deceased father.  
  
"One of you is bad enough," growled the dog demon. Kagome glared.  
  
"Sit!"  
  
"Wench!"  
  
"Sit! Don't call me that!"  
  
"Bitch!"  
  
"Sit! Not that either! And leave Shippo alone!"  
  
Sango shook her head at the antics of the other two. It was one strange version of a courtship dance they had going. She wondered if Inuyasha would ever get over that evil clay false-Kikyo and realize how much Kagome cared about him.  
  
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to her, Miroku was starting to wake up. His head hurt quite a bit, and he was really rather dazed. Under those circumstances, perhaps he can be forgiven for what happened next. Realizing vaguely that someone of the female persuasion was holding him close and thinking he was dreaming one of his more pleasant dreams, he turned his head from where it rested on Sango's shoulder and laid a gentle kiss on her neck.  
  
The results were immediate and explosive. The demon slayer shrieked and shoved him away from her. Miroku was jolted fully awake by the noise, the sensation of falling, and the sudden nearly painful twinge in his gums. He hit the ground and rolled onto his side, groaning.  
  
Kagome and Inuyasha abandoned their argument and came rushing up to see Sango jumping off Kirara with a killing look in her eye and Miroku trying to pick himself up off the forest floor.  
  
"What happened?" gasped Kagome, moving to intercept the enraged and embarrassed other woman before blood was spilt.  
  
"He - he – he-!" Sango was stammering. She had just started to think that the monk actually had a rather pleasant masculine smell when he'd turned suddenly and kissed her neck. Both the action and her body's reaction had startled her badly – hence the violent response.  
  
"Forgive me dear Sango," said Miroku, painfully getting up off the ground. His robes were dusty, and his tail looked somewhat frazzled. "I thought I was dreaming, I didn't – eh?" The twinge in his mouth was gone, but now there seemed to be a problem with his teeth. Gingerly he probed at them with his tongue, and was dismayed to discover he'd acquired a very sharp set of fangs. "Not again," he murmured in dismay.  
  
"Keh! You're a lech even in your sleep, damn bouzo," commented Inuyasha. Miroku's eyes narrowed a bit.  
  
"Could it be you're jealous of my experience, Inuyasha?" he asked innocently. The inu-hanyou turned bright red and sputtered incoherently. The violet-eyed monk straightened his robes and drew himself up. "I know of several books and sutras that might be of help to – ah, Kagome-sama? Sango? What are you...?"  
  
~  
  
The old miko Kaede was tending the herbs in her garden when the travelers emerging from Inuyasha's forest hailed her. She blinked, rubbed her eyes, and then blinked again. No, it wasn't a hallucination. Inuyasha, Sango, and Kagome were walking alongside a transformed Kirara. Riding on the firecat was young Shippo, who was keeping an eye on Miroku. The monk, somehow possessing the ears and tail of a fox, was trussed up securely with his arms bound to his sides and tied to the tolerant Kirara's back in a most undignified manner.  
  
"I am too old for this," she murmured, and went to greet the odd lot. 


	3. A Trip and a Tail

Disclaimer: See Chapter One  
  
A/N: Wow, I can't believe the response I'm getting to this fic...thank you to all reviewers! Warning – some fluff ahead!  
  
Chapter Three  
  
"Keh! Why are we doing this again?" Complained Inuyasha. The rest of the party sighed nearly in unison. In a tone that most people would have recognized as dangerously calm, Kagome began to tick off points on her fingers.  
  
"Kaede says the cure for Miroku's new curse is in the west past Sesshoumaru's lands. He has to get it before he changes entirely or it won't work. The route there is too dangerous for anyone to go alone so we're helping him."  
  
"I don't see why the damn bouzo can't fix his own mess."  
  
And since that was the eighth time Kagome had had to list these things off with the same response in the past two hours, the young miko's temper snapped.  
  
"SIT! Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, SIT!"  
  
"Break time," Shippo commented cheerfully, pulling out his top to play with. It was generally understood that the time it took Inuyasha to pry himself out of the hole created by the numerous 'sits' could be used as a break from the strenuous pace the hanyou set. Sango began to brush the purring Kirara, keeping a sharp eye on a certain monk. He had been untied earlier and his behavior had been scrupulously good ever since. Kaede's offer to make a rosary, which would subdue him in a manner similar to Inuyasha's, had helped keep him in line a bit.  
  
Kagome was currently in possession of said rosary. After much argument it had been agreed that she would only put it on him if he could not control his behavior on the way to the cure. Miroku swore piously up and down that he would behave himself and that the rosary would never need be used. He did not like the glint in Sango's eye at the idea of him being subdued every time he tried something perverted.  
  
The monk closed his eyes to meditate as they took their break, but was distracted by his tail. It was most disconcerting to feel an appendage he previously had not possessed moving about. The ears were bad enough, but his long silky tail was much worse. He glared at it out of one violet eye, and his face became thoughtful. Actually, it didn't look that silky anymore. Traveling, hitting the ground, and being tied up had left the fur draggled, knotted, and rather scruffy looking.  
  
Miroku was not vain, but there were appearances to be kept up after all! Frowning, he tried to straighten out the fur with his fingers. It didn't work too well. For one thing it was difficult to get the fool thing to hold still, and for another it was really too messy for just fingers to do any good.  
  
Sango had finished brushing Kirara, and was watching the monk's struggle with his tail. She bit her lip, a little torn. He did look rather pathetic, and she had seen Kagome brushing out Shippo's tail on several previous occasions. The fox kit had mentioned within her hearing once that it was quite difficult to brush one's own tail properly, and that he was still learning. It would be even harder for a full-grown human suddenly possessing such a tail to do so at all.  
  
Miroku accidentally caught a knot and tugged it too hard, yanking several pieces of fur loose. He let out a strangled yelp, then glanced around in embarrassment, ears flattening over the rather inhuman noise. Sango's compassion overcame her distrust at that point. She picked up the brush and went over to where the monk sat. He looked at her in surprise, but before he could say a word she placed one hand over his mouth.  
  
"I'm going to help you out, houshi-sama," she told him. His ears perked up, and the demon exterminator squashed the tiny part of her that squealed "kawaii!" She continued, "One word and I'll let you sort out those tangles on your own. And keep your hands to yourself!" He nodded in agreement, and she took her hand away from his face.  
  
Sango lifted the length of bone, muscle and fur into her lap, marveling at the softness of it despite the bad condition. Difficult to believe it was attached to Miroku. She began to brush it carefully in long slow strokes, gently undoing knots and removing debris.  
  
Miroku swallowed hard. The contact on his tail was doing all sorts of strange things to his insides. He kept his hands firmly in his sleeves and tried to look at other things. Kagome building up a fire – they were going to stop for the night here, it seemed. Inuyasha digging in the yellow backpack for ramen. Did he never get enough of that strange food?  
  
A particularly firm brush along his tail made a shiver climb straight up his spine. Oooh... His eyes began to slide half closed, and unconsciously he started to lean towards Sango.  
  
The demon slayer had pretty much cleaned up the tail by now. She laid down the brush, and then, unable to resist, ran one hand along the silky pelt. A soft growl from beside her made her start. Miroku was leaning sideways, nearly touching her, his eyes half closed and a look of ecstasy on his face. She stared at him uncertainly, and then petted his tail again. This time she saw his throat work as he gave that soft little growl of pleasure.  
  
Sango couldn't help but smile at this. He looked exactly like Kirara getting a particularly good scratch behind the ears. It was so different from his normal composed demeanor or his perverted behavior that she was curiously entranced. She continued to smooth his fur, watching him growl softly, completely unaware of himself. This odd tableau continued for several minutes until there was a soft cough from across the clearing.  
  
Sango's looked up sharply to see Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippo watching her wide-eyed. She turned red, shoved Miroku away, and jumped up.  
  
"I'll go get some firewood," she declared curtly, and left the clearing with Kirara trotting along side her. Miroku sat up, shaking his head, wondering what on earth had just happened.  
  
Shippo spun his top, wondering if he should mention that his mommy would start petting his daddy's tail like that right before they'd send him out to play for a while... 


	4. Problems and a Proposal

Disclaimer: See chapter one  
  
A/N: (big smile) You reviewers are all so nice! (Looks innocent) But who said Sango was going to become a kitsune? (Ducks rotten fruit thrown at her) Yow! Okay, okay, we'll see what happens, huh?  
  
Chapter Four  
  
Miroku was sulking. It was very difficult to pull his usual 'I-sense-an- evil-cloud-over-your-house' when he looked like a demon himself. He was beginning to understand how Inuyasha could be so bad tempered when simply walking into town could elicit shrieks of 'Ahh! Demon! Help!'  
  
It was actually worse that he was dressed as a monk – it made any other holy person in the area think he was possessed by a kitsune and try to exorcize him. Which, since he was actually turning into a kitsune and not possessed by one hurt him quite a bit. After the disastrous reactions at two successive towns, the shard hunters had resigned themselves to roughing it for the duration of the trip.  
  
Inuyasha had sniffed out a natural hot spring to camp near tonight. The girls, with their usual sharp warnings to the boys and the monk in particular, had gone off to bathe first. The hanyou had gone off to hunt for some meat to supplement their meal, leaving Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara at the campsite.  
  
Miroku's tail twitched a bit, and he favored it with a wry smile. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, it was impossible to forget the pleasantness that had occurred because of the furry appendage. Sango had been in a terrible mood for the past several days since, but he considered it a minor victory regardless. She had been petting him. Not in the place he would have first thought of when it came to petting, but still she had been touching him and enjoying it.  
  
He gazed in the direction that the women had gone, sighing. Under ordinary circumstances this would be the perfect situation to indulge in some covert admiration of the feminine figure, or what the girls called peeping. Inuyasha off hunting, Shippo and Kirara dozing by the fire...if only it wouldn't have gotten him further changed, he'd have been there already!  
  
But wait...Miroku's violet eyes widened. He wouldn't be acting perverted by just going for a stroll. And if he happened upon the girls during their bath, why, it wasn't like he was doing anything lecherous. Sango and Kagome would have found some large holes in his logic, but he wasn't them, and so was immediately off for the hot spring.  
  
The monk made his way through the trees, careful to make no noise because he didn't want to alert – ahem, disturb any woodland creatures in the area. It was easier to sneak than he'd ever done before; he wondered if it was the kitsune attributes he'd been picking up were more than just physical. His ears perked as he heard voices and splashing ahead. Slyly he left the main path and crept towards the spring through the more indirect route. Targets were almost in sight...  
  
"I couldn't help it!" came Sango's frustrated voice. "It was so soft and he looked so – so- kawaii with those ears and his eyes half closed. What's wrong with me? I never was affected by cute things before!" Miroku's grin threatened to split his face. She considered him cute, did she? He slid closer, still not able to see the occupants of the spring.  
  
"I understand," came Kagome's consoling voice. "Did I ever tell you that the first thing I did when I saw Inuyasha pinned to that tree was rub his ears?" Sango gasped. Miroku stifled a laugh.  
  
"You didn't!"  
  
"It must be genetic. My mom did the same thing when he came into the house to get me the first time."  
  
"Ge-netic?" Sango stumbled over the unfamiliar word.  
  
"Oh, um, inherited. Something in my family blood." Kagome explained the unfamiliar term as the monk went to his knees and delicately began to part the foliage so he could see the bathers. His tail was almost wagging in eagerness. He licked his fangs absently and got one heavenly look –  
  
"YEOWCH!"  
  
Kagome and Sango jumped at the sudden cry from the bushes at the edge of the hot spring. The young miko grabbed a towel and the demon slayer her boomerang – and then the towel Kagome handed her. Having a pretty good idea who it was, they angrily wrapped themselves and headed over to the source of the noise.  
  
Miroku sat on the ground staring at his hands, appalled. He looked from his clawed fingertips to the outraged girls glaring at him, and said in a voice that was nearly a whimper,  
  
"But I was just LOOKING!"  
  
WHAM SMACK SMACK WHAM!  
  
~ Inuyasha came back to camp with several rabbits he'd caught and cleaned. His eyebrows rose at the sight. Miroku, clearly bruised, sat on one side of the fire looking disconsolately at his clawed hands. The girls, hair still damp, sat on the other with expressions of mingled anger and satisfaction. Shippo slept beside Kirara, oblivious. The inu-hanyou shook his head in amazement.  
  
"Oi, Kagome, why don't we just go back to shard hunting? The lech is never gonna make it till we get to his cure."  
  
"No." Sango's voice was very firm. "He'll make it." All of them turned to look at her in surprise. Her expression was odd, not precisely readable, as she turned to the surprised monk. "Houshi-sama."  
  
"Er...yes, Sango?" Miroku asked with some trepidation. His head still hurt from the girl's retribution for peeking on them.  
  
"We will need your holy powers to beat Naraku. You will not have them if you become a kitsune. So you have to make it to your cure." There were some sharp intakes of breath at her statement. "In order to help you make it there..." Sango looked like she'd bitten something unpleasant. "Every day that you do not do something to trigger your curse, I will pet your tail at night."  
  
If Naraku had waltzed into the clearing wearing a tutu and singing 'You are my sunshine' the rest of the group would not have looked as shocked as they looked at the demon slayer's statement.  
  
"Oi! Have you lost your mind?"  
  
"Sango!"  
  
Miroku opened his mouth, showing his fangs. Closed it. Opened it, still couldn't seem to find words, and closed it again. Finally he took a deep breath and said simply,  
  
"I accept your proposal." 


	5. The Thickens Plot

Disclaimer: See Chapter One  
  
A/N: Here we go again...I suppose I should mention I was intensely sleep deprived when I wrote that last chapter...Naraku in a tutu...eh heh...Also, this chapter's a little more serious than the rest.  
  
Chapter Five  
  
On their way to find Miroku's cure, Kagome had sensed a shard. It turned out to be a giant leech demon that had been terrorizing a town for quite awhile. The group destroyed it after a long, hard battle, and in thanks had been given rooms in the home of the lord of the area. The lord was rich enough to have glass, and as such Miroku was able to look at himself in a mirror for the first time since the whole second curse fiasco had begun.  
  
He stood before the mirror in nothing but his loincloth, (A.N. Drooooooolllll) regarding himself with a mixture of curiosity and resignation. He still looked mostly like himself. His hair was still the same color, as were his eyes. For the most part his body was still that of a young, fit human male. But there was no getting around the differences.  
  
His human ears, gone. A pair of fox ears perched atop his head, poking through his unruly hair still in its usual pigtail. A long, silky foxtail swaying behind him, red furred with a white tip. The even line of his teeth had been disrupted by two overly long and sharp upper canine teeth. And of course the latest addition, the claws replacing his fingernails. Frankly, those in particular made him look more like Inuyasha than he'd ever dreamed he might.  
  
And of course, the thing around his neck made the resemblance a little more apparent. Miroku touched the rosary and grimaced. The rest of the group had accepted Sango's proposal after a great deal of arguing, but not without a major concession on his part. The rosary around his neck was that concession. Kagome had insisted that their agreement might all be well and good, but there had to be a quick way to stop him if he decided to break it. Hence the rosary. The really interesting part was that Kagome had managed to key it to the person most affected by his – er – bad habit.  
  
Sango.  
  
The demon slayer now held the same power over the monk that Kagome held over Inuyasha. In his case, the dreaded word was 'down'. It had only been used once so far, to set the rosary, and it was probably the most embarrassing thing to ever happen in Miroku's life. When the word was said his legs went out from under him and he would sit down hard on his rear, hands pressed to the earth in front of him. The monk began to pull on his robes, thinking to himself that Sango had seemed to enjoy the little spectacle far too much for his comfort.  
  
"Miroku?" Kagome tapped on the paper door of his room. "Dinner's being served."  
  
"Thank you, Kagome-sama." He opened the door and joined her on the walk to the dining room.  
  
"You've been on good behavior today," the girl from the future commented to him. He shrugged a bit wryly and fingered the rosary around his neck.  
  
"This is an excellent deterrent. I understand now how it is so effective on Inuyasha."  
  
She tilted her head curiously and looked him over. He raised an eyebrow.  
  
"What's it like?" Kagome asked him. "To have those ears and tail and all that?"  
  
"It is...different," he replied slowly. "To have parts of your body that were not present before. These," and he tugged gently on his ears, "are not just tacked on...they feel my hands as much as my hands feel them. That is disconcerting." She nodded sympathetically.  
  
"Don't worry too much, Miroku. We'll get that plant and reverse it in no time."  
  
"Assuming the bouzo manages to keep his hands to himself," cut in Inuyasha, having heard the end of the conversation as they entered the dining room. Shippo, Sango, Inuyasha and Kirara were already seated around the table. The demon slayer was feeding bits of sushi to her cat, and the kit had his mouth full of riceballs.  
  
They were all too hungry to start any kind of argument, and without further ado the shard hunters dug into the generous meal. Almost immediately, however, Miroku ran into a problem.  
  
The claws. He wasn't used to them; it felt like he was all thumbs. The monk found himself unable to use his chopsticks at all, breaking the first pair and repeatedly dropping the second. Miroku kept his face in its usual composed state, but inwardly he was getting frustrated. He snuck a glance at Inuyasha. The hanyou was using the chopsticks without any sign of difficulty, despite having claws just as prominent as the monk's. But he was used to them, surely; Miroku was not.  
  
It happened suddenly. Struggling with the utensils, the monk accidentally flipped the piece of meat he'd been trying to maneuver into the air. With the supremest of bad luck imaginable, it landed directly down the front of Sango's kimono. Miroku blanched slightly; Sango gasped.  
  
"I'm sor – ah!" The monk started to apologize, only to feel the now familiar sensation of something changing. His eyes burned, and the tie holding his hair back broke. As his freed hair fell around his face, he realized that the color was changing. "It was an accident – an accident!" Miroku growled, hardly realizing what he was doing. "This is unfair!"  
  
Kagome had risen and was tying back his now longer and very red hair with one of her 'eelastiks'. Sango plucked the food out of her kimono and passed it over to Kirara, who took it gracefully.  
  
"I know it was an accident; I saw you struggling with the chopsticks." Sango placed a hand on his forehead, much to his surprise, and peered into his face. "This is bad, houshi-sama. Not only did the curse act on an accident, but also it didn't just change one thing. Your hair is longer and red, and your eyes are bright green." Miroku swallowed hard. This had been vaguely amusing before, but it was starting to get out of hand. There was almost nothing of the human left in his appearance now. How much longer till he was entirely kitsune?  
  
Shippo had been staring wide eyed at Miroku for several minutes. Abruptly the baby fox stood, pushing away his food.  
  
"I'm tired, I'm going to bed." With those uncharacteristically curt words, Shippo left the room quickly. The others looked after him with surprise, but before anyone could go after him, the lord of the manor, Lord Dokugakushi, entered.  
  
"I felt it my duty to see that your arrangements were satis – hmm?" His dark eyes looked at the monk curiously. "What happened here?"  
  
"It's a curse," Kagome explained, finishing off the ponytail. "It triggered again, that's all. We're on our way to..."  
  
"Ah, to find the hana no kenkou?" The lord, who wasn't much older than them at twenty or so, frowned and shook his head. "That is an exceptionally difficult task. Assuming you manage to pass through Lord Sesshoumaru's lands unscathed –"  
  
There was a snort and something that sounded like a 'Keh!' from Inuyasha. Kagome glared and mouthed the word 'sit' threateningly at him. He subsided and resumed slurping noodles.  
  
"Yes...assuming you pass his lands unscathed, the mountain on which the flower grows has lately been infested by youkai of many types, non intelligent. The one who seems to be giving them orders is said to wear a white baboon pelt –"The shocked looks, gasps, and muffled curses cut the lord off yet again. He raised an eyebrow. "I take it you know of this creature."  
  
"Better than we wish," Sango replied tightly. Dokugakushi nodded, inclined his head, and after murmuring his appreciation for their services earlier, left the room. Miroku also left rather quickly. He wanted to get a good look at his new features and assess how much further he had to go before it was irreversible.  
  
He opened his door and was startled to hear soft sobs coming from the corner of the room. Cautiously he entered the dark room, was disconcerted to realize he could see too well in the dimness, and spotted a miserable baby kitsune of his acquaintance crying his little heart out. Miroku's eyes widened and he knelt beside the kit.  
  
"Shippo, what are you doing in here? What's wrong?" The kitsune's head shot up and he stared at the monk with wide, watery green eyes.  
  
"I – I – didn't pay attention, I thought it was my room, I'm sorry..." Shippo was babbling, and tears were still running down his face. Feeling sympathetic to an orphan who, like himself, had lost his father traumatically, he picked up the kit and sat him on his knee.  
  
"It's okay, Shippo. But why are you crying so hard?" The kit's lower lip trembled and his eyes began to stream even more. Suddenly he flung himself against Miroku's chest, clutching him like a drowning man and wailed.  
  
"It'sjustthatyoulooksomuchlikemypapaanditkeepsgettingworseandKagome'snicelik eshe'smymommaorabigsisterbutistillmissmypapaaaa!" The monk's heart broke at hearing this gabbled confession. He gathered the child closer to him, rocking him and muttering soothing words as his father had once done for him. His tail, as if seeking to comfort Shippo as well, came around and curled protectively over the kit.  
  
It took a long time for Shippo to calm down. At one point Kagome came in and looked relieved that the kit was safe. Miroku managed to convey that he would handle it, and she left quietly. The little kitsune's sobs eventually died away, but he'd cried himself to sleep. The monk also was tired, and still holding Shippo, eventually fell asleep himself.  
  
Sango came in sometime later, carrying a blanket. Her eyes softened at the sight before her, and she carefully covered them with a blanket so neither would catch a chill. As she left the room, the odd thought occurred to her that Miroku would eventually make a very good father. She shook her head at that strange thought, and left to her own room. Tomorrow they had to head into Sesshoumaru's main territory...  
  
Translations  
  
'eelastiks' - elastics. It's a futuristic word Miroku has some trouble with.  
  
Hana no kenkou - literally, flower of health  
  
Shippo's babble - 'It's just that you look so much like my papa/and it keeps getting worse/and Kagome's nice like she's my momma or a big sister/but I still miss my papaaa!  
  
Bonus question: Anyone know where the lord's name came from? I'll try to plop your name in the fic if you can tell me. First reviewer who has it right wins! 


	6. Conversations

Disclaimer: See chapter one  
  
A/N: Okay, here's the deal. Apparently I miswrote my question at the end of the last chapter, because I received answers translating Dokugakuji's name AND Sesshoumaru's. My bad. I DID, however, receive a correct answer to what I was asking, which more accurately put is "Which anime did the lord of the castle's name come from?"  
  
KURAMA'S LOVING WIFE got it right with Goyjo's brother from the anime Saiyuki. I'll be dropping her(?) name into a future chapter, so look out for it. Bravo!  
  
Now, honorable mentions for extended answers to the question go to:  
  
Ender Wiggin190 for an excellent translation of Sesshoumaru's name  
  
Me for a translation of Dokugakuji  
  
Gamja the Wolf's Fang for an interesting guess – but sorry, timberwolf would be something like zaimoku ookami, not Dokugakuji.  
  
(Hands out plushies of kitsune Miroku to all four reviewers)  
  
Should we have another little bonus question (written PROPERLY) in another chapter? Let me know what you think. And if I missed anyone who reviewed with an answer, I apologize, my email had been a bit screwy...  
  
On to the fic!  
  
Chapter Six  
  
"Down!"  
  
Miroku hit the ground with a thump. He sighed and waited for the spell to wear off.  
  
"Slipped again, huh Miroku?" Shippo hopped onto his shoulder. Since the night in Dokugakuji's castle, the kit had been much more amiable to the monk, treating him almost like a surrogate father or older brother. The man in question gave a wry smile. Kagome shook her head and Inuyasha grinned toothily at the sight of someone besides him getting subdued. Sango looked intensely irritated.  
  
"Have you no self control?" she demanded. He smiled more broadly.  
  
"Not around you, dear Sango." Her cheeks pinked and with a warrior's grace she leaped onto Kirara's back.  
  
"We're going to scout ahead," the demon slayer stated in a tone that brooked no argument. "Houshi-sama, if I hadn't subdued you, you would have changed even further. Think about that." The firecat leaped into the air, out of reach and then out of sight.  
  
"Miroku," Kagome scolded as said monk sighed in relief at the lifting of the spell, "It's bad enough to be traveling through Sesshoumaru's lands to a place where we know Naraku is waiting, without you upsetting Sango on top of it!" He grimaced but did not argue the point. They continued traveling, Inuyasha heckling the monk over the 'down' and Shippo defending Miroku by biting Inuyasha's ears. The hanyou grabbed the kit by the tail and bonked him several times on the head. Miroku smacked Inuyasha over the head with his staff.  
  
"Sit! Down!" Kagome yelled in frustration. Unfortunately for the monk, she had set the subduing spell so that she as well as Sango could trigger it. The young men both hit the ground, nearly squashing the baby fox. "Honestly, sometimes it's like watching The Three Stooges!" snapped the irate teen girl. Inuyasha mumbled curses into the ground, and Miroku had to bite his lip to prevent himself from doing the same. He nicked his lower lip with a fang and sighed in frustration. Kagome began removing juice boxes and crackers from her bag. "It's time for a break anyway."  
  
Moments after the spell released the boys, there was a rustling in the bushes nearby. All of them turned towards the sound warily, ready for anything. Inuyasha sniffed the air and growled.  
  
"Shit! It's that damn whelp –"  
  
A dark haired little girl emerged from the forest, smiling a wide, gap- toothed smile.  
  
"Kagome-neesan! Rin is so happy to see you!" She ran to the surprised older girl and hugged her so tightly that the startled Kagome squeezed the juice box she was holding too hard and sent the contents spraying everywhere.  
  
Six months before, Kagome had nursed the child through a flu with future knowledge and medications. In this time period, it could easily have been fatal. It had taken over thirty 'sits' to get Inuyasha to calm down and stop trying to attack his half brother. Sesshoumaru, for a change, was not interested in the Tessaiga at that time. All he cared about – and the word 'care' was dubious in regards to the cold taiyoukai – was his ward's health.  
  
That had been a most tense week, interrupted only by something that had to be seen to be believed: Kagome scolding Sesshoumaru over the care of Rin. Telling him that if he was going to let the little girl follow him around the countryside, he needed to make sure she had proper clothes and shoes for the weather, not a ragged summer yukata and bare feet!  
  
He'd remained impassive throughout her scolding, but the group noticed that Rin was now dressed in a warmer kimono and even pants, with sturdy shoes, that looked appropriate for the cooler weather. There was a crescent moon on the sleeve, something Inuyasha knew was the family crest and would deter any youkai smart enough to comprehend it from messing with Sesshoumaru's human tag-a-long.  
  
"Rin, what are you doing running around the forest alone?" Kagome asked as soon as the kid had released her hug and allowed her to breathe again. Rin looked thoughtful. Meanwhile, Inuyasha was practically bristling, looking around and sniffing the air, trying to see if his half-brother was anywhere near.  
  
"Sesshoumaru-sama went to catch something, and he told Rin-chan go find some food for Rin since she was hungry."  
  
Miroku had been watching this little interaction with tolerant amusement, particularly since the child was so focused on her 'big sister' that she didn't even notice the angry hanyou or his own kitsunish features. At her words, though, he felt cold shivers run up his spine.  
  
"Ah, Rin-chan?" he asked, dreading her answer, "what was Sesshoumaru...sama...going to catch?"  
  
"A pretty lady riding a pretty kitty in the air."  
  
The monk went still as stone. Simultaneously Inuyasha gave a snarl and unsheathed Tessaiga, Shippo dove behind Kagome, and Kagome turned and nocked her bow. And Sesshoumaru stepped out of the surrounding trees like a phantom. In his only hand, he somehow managed to hold both a limp, de-transformed Kirara by her tails, and the unconscious Sango by her belt. He dropped them almost contemptuously on the ground and turned his cold golden eyes on Inuyasha.  
  
Before either of the brothers could speak or move, there was a loud, rumbling growl. Miroku's green eyes were bleeding to red, and he dropped his staff. Infuriated beyond all reason, he charged across the space between himself and the demon lord.  
  
I'll kill him for hurting my mate! was his last coherent thought before he was engulfed in his red, red, rage. He leaped at Sesshoumaru with fangs and claws bared. Rin and Shippo cried out in terror. Miroku was unable to land a single blow on youkai. The cold lord's yellow whip flashed out, quick as thought, and hit the enraged monk hard across the chest, tearing his robes and sending blood flying. He reeled back under the blow and then tried again, still growling. Kagome and Inuyasha were yelling at him, but he did not hear them and would not have understood their words even if he had.  
  
The whip struck again, opening fresh wounds on his arms and torso. Miroku was badly overmatched, kitsune attributes or no.  
  
Sesshoumaru, who doubtless could have cut him in half in the blink of an eye, struck with the whip once more, coiling it about him and lifting him into the air, unable to move. The taiyoukai's eyes were narrowed, but otherwise he remained impassive.  
  
"Teme! Let the bouzo go now!" Inuyasha held the transformed Tessaiga threateningly, while Kagome was trying to check Sango and Kirara while simultaneously trying to comfort the terrified children.  
  
"Attack me and I'll crush him to death before you can even come close," warned Sesshoumaru, tightening the whip in warning. Miroku hissed in pain and growled again. The youkai turned his eyes on his captive.  
  
"You are the monk that travels with this absurd group. This Sesshoumaru wants to know how you have come to take on the appearance of a kitsune."  
  
The monk was well past the point of being able to speak. His growls increased, and strangely, slipped into the canine speech shared by the dog youkai, wolf youkai, and kitsunes.  
  
: Dog lord, my mate has harmed! :  
  
The eyes of Inuyasha, Shippo, and even Sesshoumaru widened in various degrees. The taiyoukai then replied in kind, the deep bass growls sounding strange coming from his slender human form.  
  
: Monk, true kitsune is not. Regardless, no mark, mate has. :  
  
: When gone air rip is, my mate will she be! :  
  
: MY territory you trespass in. YOU, I rank. Submit! :  
  
: NO! :  
  
Kagome had been wondering why on earth they were growling back and forth like that, but she hadn't ceased seeing to her unconscious friends. Suddenly, she called out,  
  
"She's okay! She and Kirara are just knocked out. They're okay!" Sesshoumaru smirked and told the enraged monk,  
  
: Fine, your mate is. Waking up now. :  
  
Miroku's head snapped around to see Sango being helped into a sitting position by Kagome. He gave a deep sigh, and his eyes began to slowly turn green again. He shook his head, ears pinned back, looking like someone who'd been awoken from a deep sleep.  
  
"Who -? Wh – what just happened?" he asked in confusion, then winced at the pain of his fresh wounds and blanched at the sight of who was holding him and how.  
  
"You need to learn to control your youkai instincts, monk," Sesshoumaru said coldly. Said monk went an interesting shade of pale at his words. "Now. Tell this Sesshoumaru how you have come to be nearly a kitsune, or I will end your life before your Air Rip can consume you."  
  
Rin was recovered from her fright, and she ran to her lord and wrapped her arms around his leg. Even after seeing it before, the others had to stifle their astonishment at this.  
  
"What is it, Rin?"  
  
"Rin thinks the monk looks nice, all fuzzy and kawaii, like when Sesshoumaru-sama takes his doggy form." Inuyasha choked at this description. The child continued, oblivious to the reaction she had caused, "Rin wishes she could be a kitsune or inuyoukai, too!"  
  
Something flashed briefly in the taiyoukai's eyes at those words, and Miroku suddenly perceived what was going through the inuyoukai's mind. Sesshoumaru would most certainly be interested in a way to turn a human into a youkai. If he was reading him right, probably in regards to the little girl looking at the cold taiyoukai with utter trust in her eyes. Rin was so fragile and would age so fast compared to him...  
  
Without giving it a second thought, Miroku explained about the curse. He balked a little at the trigger with Rin around (even he had to uphold SOME standards) and finally settled on the evasive,  
  
"When I act towards ladies in a manner which usually results in a slap."  
  
Sesshoumaru's eye twitched.  
  
"The raven youkai of which you speak, monk, is the taiyoukai of the north lands. This Sesshoumaru does not understand why she did not simply remove your head instead of placing a curse." Sango was holding a cloth Kagome had provided to her head, Kirara purring in her lap. "You seek the flower of health then. For the information you have provided, I grant you and your group safe passage across my lands."  
  
"Sit!" Inuyasha, enraged at the arrogant tone his unwelcome relative was using, had been about to attack him. The taiyoukai shook his head and dropped the monk, who immediately clutched at his bleeding wounds.  
  
"Come, Rin." He picked up the girl and his cloud formed around his feet. They rose into the air and vanished from sight, much to a certain hanyou's irritation.  
  
"Shippo, get my first aid kit from my bag. I'll need the antiseptic, the bandages, and a cold pack for Sango – she's going to have a wicked headache before long. Miroku, take off the top of your robes, I need to treat those wounds." When it came to first aid, Kagome was all business.  
  
Miroku sat rather dazed while the girl from the future treated his injuries. He guessed Sesshoumaru must have inflicted them. But what had happened in that fuzzy space between seeing the taiyoukai drop Sango's unconscious form, and 'waking up' in the coils of the whip? 


	7. What's Going On?

Disclaimer: Just go see chapter one, would you?  
  
A/N: Sorry it took me awhile. Finals are a real mitch. I have a new record for days without sleep. Regardless, here is the next chapter, and I hope all you nice people who read/review enjoy it. Also, the Air Rip is the black hole in Miroku's hand. The japanese term is Kazaana, which I have seen translated as both Air Rip and Wind Tunnel. (For anyone who was confused)  
  
Warning: some angst and FLUFF FLUFF FLUFF FLUFF FLUFF!  
  
Chapter Seven  
  
They had traveled far and hard across the Western Lands during the rest of the day. Sango had a wicked headache, but no other ill effects from her run in with Sesshoumaru. Miroku was not so lucky. He was cut up and had lost a good bit of blood. The only good thing was that he seemed to have acquired some youkai healing traits and was recovering rapidly.  
  
Physically at least.  
  
The monk rode on Kirara's back to avoid aggravating his wounds. He seemed not to be focused on his surroundings at all, green eyes staring unfocused into the distance. His tail was subdued, and his ears drooped. The others watched him with varying degrees of concern. He just wasn't acting like himself.  
  
Sango kept a watch on him out of the corner of her eye. She had been surprised and a little flattered to hear of his reaction to her injury. Shippo had started to mention something else, but Inuyasha had silenced him, grabbing up the kit and threatening to let him be squashed if Kagome 'sat' him. Then he'd taken the youngster for a 'man-to-man' talk. Sango had no idea what that was all about – and neither did Kagome. They could only guess it had something to do with what Miroku had said in the canine tongue they did not understand.  
  
She flicked her eyes at the monk again. He had been so pale when told of what he'd done. Sango guessed that up until now, this whole kitsune thing had not really bothered him overmuch. Compared to the certain death his Kazaana promised, it must have seemed quite mild. But the instance of going into youkai rage had shocked and perhaps frightened him.  
  
The demon slayer frowned slightly to herself. What had been done to her village, herself and her family was horrific and painful. Yet it had only occurred recently. She wondered uneasily what it must have been like for Miroku to grow up, losing his father to the curse, and knowing that eventually it must take his life as well. Unless he somehow defeated Naraku, of course. She had the oddest vision of Miroku at the same age as Kohaku, and shivered at the comparison.  
  
Kagome dropped back to walk beside her, eyes dark with worry.  
  
"He's taking this really hard," the future girl murmured. Sango nodded. "I wish there was some way to calm him down or relax him or something to make him feel better."  
  
Sango missed a step as a sudden thought came to her at Kagome's words.  
  
"Do you think you can get Miroku and I some time alone tonight?" she blurted softly. The look Kagome gave her was shocked, and the demon slayer blushed furiously. "Not like that! I was thinking..." she murmured her plan to the other girl, who smiled and nodded.  
  
"I'll get Inuyasha and Shippo to agree," the girl said confidently. "I'll take care of them, so you can take care of him."  
  
Sango blushed again, and then scowled at herself irritably. Why was she thinking like that? She was getting as bad as Miroku himself!  
  
~  
  
Miroku sat staring dully into the fire, resting against the large Kirara's side. His wounds ached slightly, but that was of little concern to him. After all, there was no time when the Wind Tunnel did not hurt him, at least slightly.  
  
He had been overcome with a demon rage.  
  
He had attacked Sesshoumaru like a mindless animal.  
  
He could not even remember what he had said or done.  
  
The monk clenched his fists so tightly his claws drew blood from his palms. What was going to happen to him? Would he eventually be like Inuyasha, where he would lose himself so entirely that he would slaughter innocents and not even recognize his own friends?  
  
The idea terrified him more than he would ever admit to anyone.  
  
Miroku barely noticed when Inuyasha, Shippo and Kagome left the camp to fish for dinner. But he could not help but notice when someone sat down beside him, so close that her left leg touched his right one. His head snapped up in shock to stare into Sango's warm eyes.  
  
"S-Sango?" he asked, confused. She was sitting so close she was touching him. Of her own free will. For an instant he wondered if some shape shifting youkai had taken her form.  
  
"Keep your hands where I can see them, Houshi-sama," she said, dispelling his doubts that it was really her. The demon slayer smiled a little uncertainly. "But we did have a deal, didn't we? And you haven't groped me today."  
  
Miroku had almost forgotten their deal until she reminded him. He felt his ears perk up in surprise. His tail didn't wait for his mind to sort things out – it was already draping itself across her lap. He immediately reached out with one hand to reclaim it – and was shocked to feel her hand on his own. Sango's eyes were amused, and a little...shy?  
  
"Leave it Miroku-san," she told him. His heart skipped a beat. Had she just called him by name? Then her slender but strong hands began to run through his fur, and that pleasant spine tingling, stomach-knotting sensation swept over him. His eyes slid half closed of their own accord. He struggled to maintain his dignity, but it was very difficult with her fingers playing through his fur like that.  
  
"You – don't have to, Sango-san," he managed to say. How could he let her near him when he might potentially hurt her in the future? In response her fingers kneaded deeper into the flesh and fur of his tail, making that embarrassing half purr, half growl sound begin to rumble in his chest.  
  
"I keep my deals, Miroku-san." She had called him by name again. Maybe he was dreaming? "And to be honest, I rather like your tail." Okay, he HAD to be dreaming. The monk managed to open his eyes and looked at her in confusion. She had the most charming pink blush on her face and her eyes were locked on his tail. "I know – this isn't like me. But I – we need you to be whole to complete this quest." His eyes started to slide closed again. Didn't she have any idea what she was DOING to him?  
  
"Should stay away," he murmured with difficulty. "Might hurt you." The longer she worked on his tail the more relaxed and simultaneously aroused he was becoming. It was making his mind a bit hazy.  
  
"Is that why you've been so upset?" Sango asked. He gave a slow nod. "You don't need to worry about that."  
  
"How can you know?" Miroku was unconsciously leaning closer to her, almost shoulder to shoulder. "I don't remember what I did. Inuyasha – "  
  
"Inuyasha is a half demon. His rages are the result of his body being too weak too cope with the demon blood within him." She glanced at him and blushed even redder. It was getting hard – er, difficult to ignore the physical evidence of what this was doing to him. "You're a human becoming a demon. There's no overlap. And full youkai only go into those rages for specific reasons and still remember the people they don't wish to harm. That's why you attacked Sesshoumaru and not Inuyasha or Kagome."  
  
"I – did not know." He licked his lips. This was becoming the sweetest torture he'd ever endured. His growl/purr was rumbling his whole chest now. He wanted to take her right there. He wanted to not move and let her continue.  
  
"Now you do." And Miroku was astonished to feel her hand on his face. His eyes snapped open, and he smelled something – some herb.  
  
"Sango - ?" He felt suddenly so tired. Her face swam before him, looking wry and apologetic.  
  
"You won't get better if you don't sleep, Miroku-san." She'd drugged him! He felt a stab of hurt. Had this only been an excuse to get close enough to knock him out? Then the hurt faded away into shock as she leaned forward and kissed him, oh so hesitantly and gently, on his lips. "You'll be fine. I'll watch over you."  
  
Stunned, he slumped back against Kirara's side as the drug began to take full effect. What had just happened? 


End file.
